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A view of the downtown Indy skyline from the Indianapolis Zoo.AroundIndy.com staff photo, (c) 2016, all rights reserved.

By Jennifer Hanson Downtown Indy, Inc.

Honor Black History Month with special events

Attend the Art & Soul Kickoff at the Indianapolis Artsgarden Saturday, Jan. 28 and enjoy live music from the Griot Drum Ensemble, African foods and craft, featured artist Tiffany Marie Parker’s exhibition and more. Throughout February, the Arts Council will commemorate the impact of the African Diaspora on Indiana arts and culture with free performances. Events take place at the Indianapolis Artsgarden at 12:15 p.m. on select days.

Through March 26, the Central Library hosts Meet the Artists, displaying the works of prominent local African-American artists in a wide array of mediums. Art lovers are encouraged to meet the artists and enjoy an evening of free cultural entertainment – including comedy, dance performances, gospel music and soul, a fashion show and spoken word artists – during the Meet the Artists Gala Opening Reception Feb. 11 from 5:45 – 10 p.m.

For its annual Celebration of Black History Concert, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra offers a free performance at Hilbert Circle Theatre Feb. 28 at 7:30 p.m. This year, IMPD Officer Christopher Wilburn will also accompany the ISO, singing with the orchestra in his Hilbert Circle Theatre debut. Up to four tickets can be reserved.

Do Valentine’s Day Downtown

For a night of dancing, the historic Fountain Square Theatre Building is hosting Friday Night Swing Dance Feb. 10. The Rathskeller hosts Love is All You Need Dinner Dance Feb. 11. This event includes a three-course meal starting at 6 p.m. followed by a performance from First Time Caller Band from 8 p.m. – midnight.

For couple’s looking for live entertainment, the Grammy Award-winning jazz trumpeter Chris Botti returns to Hilbert Circle Theatre with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and performs renditions of popular standards as well as original compositions from his albums Feb. 10 & 11 at 8 p.m.

Celebrate Valentine’s weekend and get fit at the same time with the Be My Valentine 5k Run/Walk along the Cultural Trail Feb. 11.

Devour Indy is back – bigger and better

Devour Downtown has joined with Devour Northside and Midtown to create the inaugural year of Devour Indy. More than 80 Downtown restaurants will be participating and offering specially-priced menu items Jan. 23 – Feb. 5. Other partner deals include discounted admission to Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site and the Eiteljorg Museum, discounted Blue Indy membership and more.

A patriotic celebration in the Brickyard Batallion at an Indy Eleven home game. AroundIndy.com staff photo, (c) 2016, all rights reserved.

Indy Eleven Press Release

NEW YORK/INDIANAPOLIS (Friday, January 20, 2017) – The North American Soccer League (NASL) announced Friday the format for the 2017 season, which will kick off on Saturday, March 25, 2017.

After starting the Spring Season on the road on March 25, Indy Eleven will return to IUPUI’s Michael A. Carroll Stadium for its home opener on Saturday, April 1. Indy Eleven will carry a 19-game regular season home undefeated streak – the second-longest such streak during the NASL’s modern era – into its April 1 home opener, a run buoyed by an impressive 13W-3D-0L mark last season.

“With a strong core of players returning to play in front of the best fans in the NASL at Carroll Stadium, everyone at Indy Eleven is eager to get the 2017 season underway,” said President Jeff Belskus. “We look forward to giving our fans even more wins and more trophies to celebrate as we start play on March 25.”

Each NASL club will compete in a 16-game Spring Season, followed by a 16-game Fall Season, hosting eight home games in each.

The champions from each season will earn the right to host a semifinal game in The Championship, the league’s four-club postseason tournament, on the weekend of November 4. The Championship Final will be played on the weekend of November 11.

“Over the years, our intense split-season competition has produced the drama and excitement that fans crave,” said NASL Interim Commissioner Rishi Sehgal. “The 2017 season will be no different, and we can’t wait to watch our clubs battle each other week in and week out.”

Eight clubs will take the field in 2017: FC Edmonton, Indy Eleven, Jacksonville Armada FC, The Miami FC, New York Cosmos, North Carolina FC, Puerto Rico FC, and San Francisco Deltas.

The league expects to release the full 2017 schedule in the coming weeks.

The only way to currently save a seat at Carroll Stadium for the April 1 home opener is by securing 2017 Indy Eleven Season Tickets, which start at just $135 for the 17-game package (16 regular season games plus one bonus game). For more information on 2017 Season Ticket benefits and pricing, visit www.IndyEleven2017.com.

A relaxed atmosphere in the dance studio, complete with a generous array with refreshments, provided a perfect opportunity for the dancers to get to know each other and meet their Arthur Murray professional dance partners.

Deanna Hindsley, president, board of directors, Hendricks County Museum, reflected on the evening, “Arthur Murray Dance Center gave a wonderful welcome to our dancers and committee at the Kick-0ff where we all learned a few basic steps to get started. What a fun event and a great introduction to the 2017 ‘Dancing with the Hendricks County Stars!”

Mark Adang, manager of Arthur Murray Avon, stated, “The kick-off event was a terrific start to the Dancing with the Hendricks County Stars 2017 season. The staff and dancers are excited and energized to make this the best Dancing with the Hendricks County Stars ever”.

This year features a married couple, Dennis and Yao-Hsin Dawes, competing together. Like all the contestants, they will be working with a dance professional throughout a series of lessons on choreography and technique. The night of the competition, however, they will compete on stage as a couple.

This year’s event will be at the Hendricks County Fairgrounds on the evening of Saturday, April 29. Tickets will be available for purchase on March 1. The price of the tickets includes dinner and the show. A silent auction will once again take place prior to the competition and a cash bar will be available.

Corporate tables and sponsorships are currently available. For more information or if you would like to donate an item for the silent auction, contact Deanna Hindsley at dkhindsley@gmail.com, or call 317-695-5602.

INDIANAPOLIS (January 25, 2017) – Married couples are invited to start their Valentine’s Day celebrations by renewing their wedding vows at the Indianapolis City Market’s Sharing the Love celebration. The event is free and open to the public and will include a wedding vow renewal ceremony, live entertainment, cake, punch, a photo station, and special coupon offerings to participating City Market merchants. The vow renewal ceremony will be presided over by Indy Style’s own Tracy Forner.

The event will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 14. Those participating should arrive around 10:30 a.m. The wedding vow renewal ceremony will begin at 11 a.m., and couples are welcome to remain after the ceremony.

Cake for the event will be provided by City Market merchant Circle City Sweets. Monthly correspondence supply company Haven Paperie and floral design company Southern Sky Design will have a Valentine’s Day flowers and cards “pop-up shop” at the event.

Urban’s songs have reached the top of the charts 21 times, most recently with current smash hit “Blue Ain’t Your Color.” Urban has recorded eight studio albums and is the first male Country artist to debut atop the all-genre charts in the U.S., Canada and Australia. He’s won both a People’s Choice Award and an American Music Award and has been nominated for a Golden Globe. He’s also won eleven Academy of Country Music Awards, has had five consecutive platinum or multi-platinum albums and is a member of the famed Grand Ole Opry.

“Firestone Legends Day has become an awesome way to celebrate the night before the Indianapolis 500 each year and having Keith Urban headline this year’s concert is going to be fantastic,” said IMS President J. Douglas Boles. “Keith’s many chart-topping Billboard hits, along with his appreciation for racing, will give thousands of spectators a can’t miss show to help celebrate the 101st Indy 500 Race Weekend.”

“The Firestone Legends Day concert has become a much anticipated Indianapolis 500 tradition, and we are excited to partner with the Speedway to bring superstar Keith Urban to the IMS stage,” said Philip Dobbs, chief marketing officer, Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations. “This event gives us the perfect platform to showcase the hard work and trusted dependability that make up the Firestone brand, and it allows us to connect with passionate country music fans in an engaging way.”

Dustin Lynch and Clayton Anderson will be special guests and fill out the full lineup.

Lynch’s self-titled debut album hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart. His lead single, “Cowboys and Angels,” exceeded platinum sales status while earning Lynch a legion of devoted fans. “Cowboys and Angels” became a modern day country classic, ending the year as one of Billboard’s Top 5 Country Songs of 2012. Racking up over 25 million views on YouTube/VEVO, soaring to #1 on the MTV Music Meter and selling 2.4 million digital singles, the Tennessee native brings a fresh combination of traditional influences and edgy intensity to the genre. His sophomore album WHERE IT’S AT, debuted at #1 on the iTunes Country Albums Chart and has tallied over 750,000 tracks sold to date.

Over the past four years, southern Indiana native Clayton Anderson has managed to do the unthinkable – he’s cracked into country music backwards, independently and with a fury.

Anderson has released three albums, including his brand-new project, Only To Borrow. Recorded in Los Angeles and Nashville, this six song EP was written and produced by Clayton and some of music’s most talented writers, musicians and producers. The album’s first single, “In the Dark” garnered immediate streaming activity online and captured the attention of influential music playlist programmers. Armed with new music and an electric live show, Clayton Anderson is not only here to stay, but a force to be reckoned with.

General admission tickets for the concert start at $40 and access to the Firestone Concert Pit near the front of the stage is set for $75. Prices will increase closer to the concert date. For tickets and additional information, please visit www.ims.com or call (800) 822-INDY. Children 3 and under are free to the concert.

IMS ticketholders can sign up to receive pre-sale information by clicking here. Details will be communicated via email this week.

Fans with tickets for the Firestone Legends Day Concert will be admitted free to Legends Day activities. Admission to IMS on Legends Day will be $10 for adults, with children 15 and under free when accompanied by an adult.

Other featured events on Legends Day presented by Firestone include the annual Public Drivers’ Meeting on pit road adjacent to the Tower Terrace grandstand, autograph sessions with the Indianapolis 500 starting field of 33 drivers and former Indy 500 drivers and an Indianapolis 500 memorabilia show.

The 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil will be held on Sunday, May 28, 2017.